Well, nothing sure tastes better than a "ripe" MRE.  Does anyone understand the date codes, or is it a well kept military secret?

Perhaps an AR15 code-breaker savant wants to give it a shot.  Here is a list of MREs and date codes:

< Here are the answers, thanks to esbfan, and others who confirmed>

Pears SPC 6311 1C1 [right]311 day of 1996[/right]
Peaches 6248C A06E [right]248 day of 1996[/right]
Mixed Fruit SPB 7237 1E4 [right]237 day of 1997[/right]
Applesauce 6288M1 1 Ae2 [right]288 day of 1996[/right]
Chicken Stew 7197M1 [right]197 day of 1997[/right]
Grilled Chicken Breast 7093B1 1 8AF5 [right]093 day of 1997[/right]
Beef Steak 7052B1 1 6A65 [right]052 day of 1197[/right]

... watchman

Good one RAF.

So far, I learned that the military date code is formatted mmddy

The Peaches 6248C would be June 24, but is it 1988 or 1998?

Did these people ever hear of Y2K, and how did their ancestors ever make it past Y1K????

... watchman

Watchman...deciphering the code is not really very intuitive...it is a bit weird. Why they can't just stamp the date of mfg. is a mystery but I'm sure there is a good reason!
Here is what I learned regarding the code. This info is direct from The Wornick Company/Mil-Spec MRE's. I believe they are the largest supplier to the U.S. Military.
Typically, the code is only found on the case box and components but not on the menu bag. There is a 4 digit lot number that may be followed by some letters and other numbers. As an example assume the code you see is 9055A B02A. Forget the A and B02A. What you are interested in is the first four digits 9055. The 9 represents the last digit of the year of manufacture, in this case 1999. The 055 means they were produced on the 55th day of the year or February 25th. So look at the four digits on your stuff and calculate the date. The shelf life on MRE's depends solely on the temp at which they are stored. The cooler the better. Mil-Spec produces a graph which shows that their MRE's will last to 11 years if stored at 60 degrees but will last only 3 years if stored at 80 degrees. At 70 degrees the MRE's should be good for 6 years.
I think it is a good idea to call a seller and ask the code when buying on-line. There are some realllly old MRE's on the market. I had good luck buying a case from Cheaper Than Dirt that were produced at the end of 2000. I'm sure there is even fresher stuff out there. Go on-line and search MRE's. There are some reputable sellers that advertise the mfg. date etc.
Hope this info helps! Looking at your listed codes it looks like yours were made in 1996 and 1997. Again, depending on the storage temp. they could still be good.
Old MRE's can kill! [puke]
 

I once opened an MRE and rotten water poured out. Now, I just pack junk food and cook Ramen noodles in my neat little stove when I go to the field.

Thanks esbfan,

Your reply confirms several sources that said the date code is actually yddd, where ddd is the julian date (from 1 to 365).

So, my SPC6311 pears were packed on the 311th day of 1996.  Likewise the Grilled Chicken Breast 7093B1 was been packed on day 93 on 1997.

I also learned that MREs are 1300-1500 calories and supply 1/3 the active military nutritional requirements. FYI death-by-ar15, for comparison, a top ramen only has around 500 calories.

For more info on MREs check out [url]http://www.dscp.dla.mil/subs/rations/meals/mres.htm[/url] .  These guys have several universities, reps from USDA, logistics from ARMY, NAVY, AirForce and Marines.  Never knew that so much went into an MRE.

Hey, they may not taste so good, but lots of people thought a long time about what goes into an MRE.

... watchman

When I was in bootcamp back in '91, we were getting MRE's from the early and mid 80's. They were edible (Ham Slice RULES followed by the dehydrated pork patty. The omlette was [puke] ), and even had M&M's from the early '80's (didn't get to have those until MCT though). So they do last awhile.
The newer MRE's are pretty good. Jalapeno cheese rocks!!

[smoke]

New MREs are not too bad actually.

Aviator  [img]www.milpubs.com/aviator.gif[/img]

Hey timh70, I agree with the jalapeno cheese spread, and those powdered M&Ms are the best. Don't even need to chew 'em.

Aviator, I think that I remember you from the "old" board.  Been awhile for me, but I'm still the same guy.

In your honor, I'll start a new thread on "best tasting MRE"

... watchman